Good Men
by MisticKiwi
Summary: A Warbreaker prequal. The Five Scholars were some of the most powerful people of their time. What was Vasher like before the events of Warbreaker? How exactly did he and Denth change so much? What about Shashara, Arsteel, and Yesteel? This is the story of their past. A time when they were all good men.


This story takes place before the events of Warbreaker, during the Manywar. The Five Scholars were all still alive and working together.

Shashara looked over at Vasher, her eyes filled with longing. He was practicing sword play with her brother out in the field. Vasher could never even manage to land a hit on Denth, yet he would always keep trying. He was a great awakener and one of the foremost scholars she had ever met on the topic, but he was no warrior.

Vasher was just so…perfect. He treated everyone equally, he helped the less fortunate whenever he could, he even attem- Shashara's thoughts were interrupted as Denth knocked Vasher down to the ground with his shoulder, holding his blade to Vasher's neck. They exchanged a few words, laughed and got ready to do it again. This would usually continue until Denth let Vasher land at least one hit on him. Knowing Vasher, that could take hours.

Shashara ran over to the field as the swords clanged together. She went to the edge of the dueling field and waved. "That's enough boys! Vasher and I have some real work to do."

With a swift movement of his wrist, Denth smacked Vasher's sword out of his hand. "Vasher, sometimes I wonder if you'll ever be able to beat me in a duel."

Vasher recovered his sword and grinned. "Oh don't you worry about that, I'm just letting you win now so that you underestimate me when I actually want to win." Vasher's crooked smile, she loved it. How could anyone not? He sheathed his sword and looked towards Denth. "Well Denth, as much as I love getting tossed around out here, me and your sister have some real work to do."

Shashara couldn't help but laugh. Did she make it to obvious that she was in love with her brother's best friend? Probably. Did she care? No. How could anyone not be interested in Vasher? He was just so…Vasher.

Before Shashara and Vasher could leave, Artseel came up to the field. Arsteel and Denth were the best swordsmen Shashara had ever known, probably the best in Hallandren. Artseel walked over to Denth and smirked. "You know what I had about being a fantastic dueler Denth?"

"What?"

"Nobody ever appreciates you. It's like all the fighting you do doesn't matter at all."

Denth went over and patted Arsteel on the back. "Exactly. And then you offer to train them and they give you some excuse every time you beat them in a duel." He smirked as looked at Vasher.

The swordsmen would always tease Vasher. Shashara always noticed how he would try to brush it off and act like it didn't bother him, but deep down she knew it did. Why else would he train so often with them? He hated feeling incompetent. If only he knew how she felt about him…

"Say Shashara, you know what I hate about being a scholar?"

Shashara snapped back to reality. _How many times will I get lost in my thoughts before I realise how stupid I look._ After a long pause she finally answered, "What's that?"

"It's just that these big brutes carry around these sharp pieces of metal and think they are the best of men. First of all, I have never met a good looking dueler. Who cares if you can swing a sword if you don't have a handsome appearance or a charming personality?"

_He really is charming._

Before Denth and Arsteel could even respond, Vasher grabbed Shashara's arm and started walking towards the house. "Well I've entertained you all long enough. We are off to change the world of Awakening as we know it!"

Shashara let out a girlish giggle and looked back towards her brother and Arsteel. Even they couldn't resist laughing. Despite all the teasing, they would give their lives for each other.

Vasher smirked looking straight ahead and walking, Shashara beside him. "Well, now that you've spent your morning watching your brother throw me to the ground I suppose we should get back to work."

_How does he make everything seem so charming? It has to be that crooked smile of his. Or maybe it's how he's always so sarcastically sure of himself…_

She realised she was getting lost in her thoughts again. She really needed to work on that. "I suppose we should. How long do you think we will take today?"

"At least couple of hours, maybe more depending how quickly I get bored or distracted."

A couple of hours in a room alone with the most sarcastic, obnoxious, laziest man she had ever met? She smiled just thinking about how perfect that sounded.

_It's the smile, it has to be that smile…_


End file.
